Daring Bakers Challenge: Cannoli!

(cannoli with ricotta filling)

The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

Here are my cannoli!  This was a fun challenge.  I made my own ricotta and mascarpone using the recipes linked below in the recipe.  It was my first foray into cheese-making and was very interesting.  I think the lack of humidity made my cheese too dry, because I had a hard time getting it to be as creamy as I imagined it.  I ended up adding some whole milk to the ricotta mixture.  I also folded whipped cream into both the mascarpone and ricotta mixtures.  I flavored both fillings with vanilla and chopped almonds and chopped bittersweet chocolate.  Very rich, but tasty.

The shells were the also interesting.  I made my dough in advance and it actually spent two days in the fridge because something came up and I wasn't able to fry the cannoli shells when I had planned to.   I used sweet Marsala wine in my dough, and followed the recipe as written.  

When I rolled my dough I was so sure that I had it ultra thin.  But this dough really does spring back quite a bit.  I had some cannoli rolled and then ready on the forms (I used a cut up 1 inch diameter wooden dowel) while my oil finished getting up to temperature.  By the time the oil was ready (about 5 minutes) the dough had already shrank about 1/2".

I fried them up anyway, but they seemed too thick.  After two minutes of frying they looked done on the outside but when I removed the forms they were still a little doughy on the inside.  

I decided the best way for me to make these was to cut 3 inch circles from the dough I already had rolled out and then roll each 3 inch circle out ultra thin, then put it on the cannoli form.  I was only able to fry 1 cannoli at a time due to the size of my pan, so I basically, cut out the circle of dough, rolled it out very, very thin, sealed it with egg white then put it directly in the oil so it didn't have time to shrink back.  I made each cannoli shell one at a time, with good results.

My only minor disappointment is that I didn't get a lot of the typical blistering on the shells.  My oil was at 375 degrees, my shells were rolled very thin, but I just didn't get a lot of blistering. I wonder if it was because the dough sat an extra day in the fridge.  Oh well, they were really tasty anyway.

Thanks for the great challenge!

(cannoli with mascarpone filling)

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German Chocolate Cake

I made this cake for my two lovely friends (One who has a blog here...)  They spent two Saturdays with with me designing and building a two compartment compost bin for my backyard out of scrap wood and old palates.   It was excellent.  They put a lot of time and effort in the the project with me and I am eternally grateful.  What do I do for people that I am eternally grateful for?  Bake them cakes and invite them to supper!

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Chocolate Raspberry Pudding Cake

Mmm, pudding cake! What could be better?  A cake that mixes easily and frosts itself?  It's almost too good to be true!  I took this cake to a family gathering and it was quickly devoured by all.  I only have one word of caution: don't try to make this cake in a spring form pan.  This might seem like common sense to any other person, but for some reason, I decided to make this in a spring form pan, even though I knew the frosting was going to be on the bottom... yeah...

So, I put the cake in the oven and then ran upstairs to do some work on my computer.  When I came down to check my cake near the end of baking time I smelled burning.  Panic seized me as I ran to the oven yelling, "Don't be burned! Don't be burned!"  I opened the oven door and realized that some of the frosting and leaked out the bottom of the pan and was burning on the bottom of the oven.  Relief washed over me as I realized I hadn't burned my actual cake. Phew!

However, I did have only about 1/2 the frosting that was supposed to be on the cake.  It was still very tasty though.  So if you make this, expect a little more icing than my pictures show... unless you make the same mistake I did and use a spring form pan...

Warm Chocolate-Raspberry Pudding Cake

Taken from the Gourmet Cookbook (Also available on Epicurious.com)

For frosting

3 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened)
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam (about 5 ounces)
1/2 cup heavy cream

For cake batter
1/2 cup boiling water
1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam (about 3‚ ounces)
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350°F. and generously butter a 9- by 2-inch round cake pan.

Make frosting:
Chop chocolate. In a small heavy saucepan bring jam, cream, and chocolate to a simmer, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Pour frosting into cake pan.

Make cake batter:
In a bowl whisk together boiling water and cocoa powder until smooth and whisk in milk, vanilla, and jam. In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy and add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Into another bowl sift together flour, baking soda, and salt and add to egg mixture in batches alternately with cocoa mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating well after each addition.

Pour batter evenly over frosting mixture and bake in middle of oven 30 to 35 minutes, or until a tester inserted into cake comes out clean (frosting on bottom will still be liquid). Cool cake slightly in pan on a rack, 10 to 20 minutes. Cake may be made 1 day ahead, cooled completely in pan and left in pan, covered, at room temperature. Reheat cake, uncovered, at 350°F. 10 to 15 minutes.

Run a thin knife around edge of pan and twist pan gently back and forth on a flat surface to loosen cake. Invert a cake plate with a slight lip over cake pan and, holding pan and plate together with both hands, invert cake onto plate. Frosting will cover cake and run onto plate.

Serve cake garnished with raspberries.

Feta Stuffed Chicken and Butternut Squash Risotto

Feta-Stuffed Chicken has been a long-time favorite at my house.  I'm actually surprised that I haven't posted about it before since it is 1) incredibly easy to make 2) kind of fancy 3) super delicious.  I don't even know what magazine this recipe was clipped out of it is so old.  I wish I knew so I could give credit where credit is due. 

I have the same problem with this amazing butternut squash risotto recipe.  It is a pretty old recipe and I don't know what magazine it is from, but it was entered into the magazine for a contest by Nancy Skahill and it won $400!  It is really very good.  It actually isn't too "squash-y" if you ask me.  The squash is there and tastes great, but squash flavor is not infused throughout, which is fine with me because it means my husband will eat it, even though he doesn't really like squash!

Feta-Stuffed Chicken

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs (make sure they are finely crushed)

1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled feta cheese with basil and tomato (you could also use more or less to your tastes, though I think I used a little more.  Also, you could use regular and flavor it with other things)

1 1/2 teaspoons melted butter

salt, pepper (to taste)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Mix the breadcrumbs, salt and pepper and place on a plate.  Place each chicken breast between two sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap; flatten to 1/4 inch thickness using the flat side of a meat mallet or a rolling pin.  Dredge the chicken in the breadcrumb mixture.  Spoon 1 tablespoon  (or a little more if you are feeling generous and you think your chicken will wrap around it fully). Fold in half (or wrap chicken around the cheese in such a way that it is completely encased). 

Place the chicken in a baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Drizzle the melted butter on top.  Bake, uncovered for 25 minutes or until chicken tests to the correct temperature on a meat thermometer.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Adapted From recipe by Nancy Skahill

5 cups chicken broth

2 tablespoons olive oil

3-5 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/4" to 1/2" cubes (about 3 cups)

1 1/2 cups arborio rice

1/4 teaspoon saffron, crushed or ground turmeric (I have used both with excellent results)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese (plus some extra for topping, if you like)

1/8 - 1/4 ground white pepper (if you don't care about black specks in the risotto like I didn't, you can just use black pepper)

In a medium saucepan, bring broth to a boil.  Cover and reduce the heat until broth just simmers.  Meanwhile, in a large pot heat oil over medium heat.  Add the squash and rice; cook for 1 minute, add garlic and cook for 15 seconds.  Slowly add 1/2 cup hot broth and the saffron or turmeric to the rice mixture, stirring constantly.  Continue to cook and stir over medium heat until broth has been absorbed and the mixture is creamy (this should take about 20-25 minutes). 

Remove the risotto from heat.  Stir in the butter, cheese and pepper.  Serve immediately.  Makes 8-10 servings

Per serving: about 183 calories

Daring Bakers' Challenge: French Macarons

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe.

I must say, I was so incredibly excited about this challenge when I saw it.  I have never had a French macaron, but have seen them on the internet and they just look so good.  I love the way you can have so many different flavor combinations and they are just so fancy looking!

So I decided I wanted to try some raspberry macarons with pink peppercorn buttercream I had seen here.  I got all my ingredients and tried it out using the Daring Baker's recipe.  To get the raspberry flavor I added some dried raspberry powder and two drops of red food coloring. 

Before baking, I had scoured the Daring Bakers' forums reading everything I could about making macarons.  I did my very best to follow everyone's tips.  When I put my macarons in the oven I was so excited! I couldn't wait to see their crisp shells with chewy centers and their smooth flat bottoms with the ever desired "feet". 

I opened the oven and I had ... sticky Milano cookies?

*sigh*

So, I tried to dry them out as best I could so I could get them off the sheet.  I filled them with a little chocolate ganache and called it a day, vowing to try again.

I saw David Lebovitz had a recipe that looked promising that other Daring Bakers' had some success with.  So, today, I gave that one a try.

The meringue was very, very thick.  It was very sturdy and it seemed nearly impossible to deflate.  It was much easier to work with than the Daring Bakers' recipe.  When I piped it out I was a little disappointed to see that I had peaks on nearly all my macarons.  I had heard this could happen so I used a damp finger to gently flatten them out, which is what I read you were supposed to do when this happened.

I popped them in the oven and 15 minutes later ...  BLAM!  I had the feet!  I had domed tops (though slightly peaked, the damp finger didn't quite take care of it all the way).  However, I was worried that maybe they might stick to the parchment like the last disaster.  So I let them stay in the oven a little longer.  Then, I let them sit in a cooling oven for a little bit, not even an hour.  When they came off the parchment easily I took them out of the oven to cool.

I was so excited!  Sure they had little peaks, but they were macarons!  I couldn't wait to find out what it was all about!  When they were cool enough, I slathered some chocolate-peanut butter ganache in between and took a bite... CRUNCH!

They were so crunchy, I was sure I had messed up again.  I know they are supposed to be crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside... this is not what I had created.  They were crunchy all the way through like a meringue.

They were tasty, don't get me wrong, I ate several of them!  But, they were not macarons.  But, I think I know what I did wrong.  I let the past experience steer me in the wrong direction.  I should have taken them out of the oven right at 15 minutes, or maybe a little before.  Next time, that is exactly what I will do.   And someday, I will try those raspberry pink peppercorn macarons for real.

I will say, macarons may be one of the most difficult and finicky things I have ever tried to make.  I will try them again sometime, but for now, I guess I'm just happy that I got feet! :D

(Below is the Daring Bakers' recipe from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern)  The recipe for these pictures (2nd attempt at macarons, is linked above)

French Macarons

Ingredients
Confectioners’ (Icing) sugar: 2 ¼ cups (225 g, 8 oz.)
Almond flour: 2 cups (190 g, 6.7 oz.)
Granulated sugar: 2 tablespoons (25 g , .88 oz.)
Egg whites: 5 (Have at room temperature)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.
2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.
3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.
4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.
5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).
6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored.
7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Yield: 10 dozen. Ami's note: My yield was much smaller than this. I produced about two dozen filled macaroons.

Fill with buttercream, jam, or ganache of your choice.